An enjoyably absurd friendship tale sure to cause giggles.
Two overly polite pals can’t decide who should go first in this picture book.
On a scorchingly hot day, Chicken and Egg both agree that a banana split would be a perfect way to cool down. But when they get to the ice cream shop, they can’t even get through the door because each friend insists “After you.” To decide who should cross the threshold first, they try playing rock paper scissors, flipping a coin, and running a race. For various reasons, no method breaks the deadlock; by the time they finally agree on drawing straws, the shop is closed. Maybe a grilled cheese sandwich—if they can agree who gets to decide where to go. In this series opener, Stevenson creates a humorously ludicrous dilemma that children, who are so often on the receiving end of etiquette instructions, can especially appreciate. The plot offers the repetition kids like, as seen in the refrain “This went on for a ridiculously long time”—perfect for reading aloud expressively. The nicely varied and dynamic digital images by debut illustrator Stedmond contribute to the fun, including the image capturing the pals’ comically grim determination to win the race.
An enjoyably absurd friendship tale sure to cause giggles.Pub Date: April 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-73254-103-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Frog Prince Books
Review Posted Online: April 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
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